Fever
by azurewave
Summary: You can't go back
1. Prelude

**Prelude  
**_And I said what I said and I meant it, but now I regret it. Could you touch me again?_

She closed the space between them, holding him in a tight embrace. She could feel his warm breath on her neck. A shiver of electric current ran down her spine, her own breathing erratic and fluttering in her chest. A panicked butterfly. She knew she should leave. She _wanted_ to leave. His lips, delicate against her skin, brushed her jaw line. He ran his fingertips through her long, fiery hair. Another shiver. She made to pull away, but he held her in her arms.

They locked eyes. It hung in the air between them, an understanding. This was her chance. If she wanted to back out, she should now. His lips almost touched hers, hesitating. Waiting for her to react. She did nothing.

"It's..." He paused, "We don't-"

Her lips crashed against his, cutting him off and colliding them together in wave of fever. Knotting her fingers into his hair, she continued to kiss him desperately.

She couldn't go back.

AN. Lyrics by A Fine Frenzy. Please R&R :)


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter One  
**Christmas Spirit  
**_Will you be the same as when I saw you last? Tell me how much time has passed._

A flurry of bustling shoppers hurried through the quaint little street at the muggle side of London, clutching their scarves to their necks and lugging carrier bags along with them. The street was lit by a sweet glow of amber from the towering lamp-posts, with the occasional red, green, or gold flash of Christmas lights. Ginny Weasley smiled to herself, humming the tune of the muggle music that caught her ears as she passed each shop. A little girl giggled at her red-nosed, mitten-wearing father, who was attempting (and failing) to open a packet of toffees. A elderly woman, with a puff of white hair which looked uncannily like candy-floss, rifled through her red handbag outside _Sweetheart__ Confectionery. _A man dressed like Father Christmas, with an askew beard and a round belly, stood at the side of the road, ringing his bell and warbling "Silent Night". His black hair was protruding from beneath his hat.

Towards the end of the road was _Tater's Café_, a creamy building decorated with gold tinsel and fairy lights. Stepping out of the cold December air, and into the cinnamon and chocolate scented coffee shop, Ginny set down her bags on her regular table by the window. She adored _Tater's Café_; any excuse to go shopping within a half-an-hour walk of the place resulted in two hot chocolates with marshmallows and at least one cupcake. Sinking into a squishy chair and removing her coat and dragon-hide gloves, Ginny smiled warmly at the waiter who was already making his way over to her with her usual order.

"I think I come here too often," Ginny mused, breaking into a grin as she took the tray, placing a couple of gold muggle coins into his open palm.

The waiter laughed in response, picking up some dirty plates from the table behind her, "I'd say frequently rather than too often." He paused, shifting out of the way for a new customer to pass and turning to the person on the table next to hers.

Ginny ran her small fingers around the rim of her mug, watching the marshmallows melt like snowballs and occasionally lifting her head to absently watch people pass the café. Walking on, each person wore a look of longing as they glanced into the comfort and warmth of the coffee shop. Some even paused, hesitating. Ginny was definitely amused easily.

The waiter was still hovering around the table next to her, waiting for the customer to decide on their order. He was holding up the menu with his long, skinny arms and he kept tapping his foot, clearly uncomfortable.

"Have you decided, sir?" He paused, waiting for an answer. None came. "... Would like like a few minutes to decide? I can leave you with the menu, and –"

"A coffee. Black," A male voice drawled, finally. Ginny stiffened suddenly, almost choking on her hot chocolate. Turning in haste, her red hair whipping around her face, she met the cold, steely, grey eyes of Draco Malfoy. He looked as surprised as she did, not noticing the waiter scurrying off. Or merely ignoring him. Ginny decided that it was probably the latter.

He quickly regained his composure, curling his lips into a smirk. "Weaslette. Or Potter now, perhaps. Predictable. I had no idea that you could afford actual food... or did you find that cupcake in the bin outside?" He had a look of triumph on his pale face, brushing his white-blonde hair from out of his eyes with his fingertips. It was longer than it had been while they were at Hogwarts, and it was no longer slicked back. It actually rather suited him. Ginny stood that thought out of her head _very_ quickly.

"Still Weasley, actually," Ginny said acidly, clenching her jaw, "And I'm more surprised to see you here. I thought anything that had anything to do with muggles would make your skin crawl."

The waiter, who had been delaying returning to the intimidating blonde man by repeatedly boiling the kettle, carefully placed Malfoy's coffee on the table in front of him, making a swift exit away from the icy atmosphere. He would later Google the word "muggles".

Malfoy opened his mouth, probably to come back with a biting retort, when Ginny cut in, "You know what, Malfoy... it's been four _years _since I've had to look at that ferret face of yours.I've had a tiring day at work. I do not want insults thrown at me, and I don't want to throw insults at anyone either. All I want to do is drink my hot chocolate and relax, so if you please shut up and drink your coffee, we can both be happy."

Malfoy said nothing. He quietly sipped his coffee, observing Ginny with mild interest. He licked his lips slowly, placing down his mug. "Potter not tied you down yet, then?"

"'Tied down'," Ginny repeated, with a roll of her bright brown eyes, "We aren't married, no."

He looked a little surprised, but extremely amused. He glanced down at her left hand, looking for a band around her ring finger. He found none. "Not engaged yet either? Interesting."

"Is it?" Ginny said, calmly.

"It is," Malfoy's smirk returned, "Said no then, did you? Where does Potter fall... _short_?"

"As a matter-of-fact, he hasn't asked me. And Harry does not fall _short_, Malfoy. Why, interested are you?"

Malfoy chuckled, "Calm down, Red. I do like how you jumped to that insinuation. I apologise on behalf of men everywhere for Potter's _shortcomings_." He continued to smirk, immensely enjoying getting under her skin. "A bit silly, not tying _you_ down, don't you think?"

Ginny cringed internally "I insinuated nothing!" She ignored his passive compliment. The way he was sat made her slightly uncomfortable, with his arm was slung easily on the table, the other on Ginny's chair. He was definitely good-looking; there was no doubt about that, especially judging from the adoring gazes of passing women - and a couple of men – from outside the window. He looked almost like an ice-sculpture, carefully carved to perfection, down to his crisp white shirt. She took a deep breath, searching for a reply.

"I heard about Pansy _dumping_ you, Malfoy."

"I actually dumped her, Weasel."

"What happened?" She mirrored his smirk, collecting herself, "Did she get bored of having to look at your pointy face everyday?" A muscle twitched in Malfoy's jaw. She'd touched a nerve. Ginny locked eyes with him in triumph.

"She cheated on me."

He no longer wore his smirk, almost his trademark. He honestly looked dejected for a moment, flinching as he felt Ginny look at him. She stopped smirking too.

"I'm... sorry, I didn't think it would actually-"

Malfoy got to his feet, shooting her a look of loathing, and pulled his black coat over his broad shoulders. He stepped back out into the cold and Ginny watched him walk away, flushing scarlet with the embarrassment at the disapproving glares of the customers in the café. Ginny felt guilty. She actually felt guilty of offending _Malfoy._ Malfoy, of all people!

She would bet her broomstick that he merely couldn't think of a comeback and decided to storm out, rather than sit in the coffee shop in embarrassed silence on his part, while Ginny wore a smug grin. Ginny rolled her eyes, standing up herself. She was indignant that she had done nothing wrong and she told herself this all the way home. She tried to ignore the niggling memory of his expression...

The waiter returned to Ginny's table, clearing her mug away, along with the the blonde man's coffee. He noticed, rutting his eyebrows in confusion, that she'd left almost all of her cupcake and the majority of her hot chocolate.

AN. Lyrics by FFAF. I decided to post Chapter One veryyy fast because the Prelude is just so short! I hope you like it :) Please R&R!


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